Despite continued uncertainty surrounding the fiscal cliff, Americans are showing increased confidence in the housing market and the direction of the economy, according to government-controlled mortgage giant Fannie Mae .

“Consumer attitudes toward both the economy and the housing market continue to gather momentum, with many of our 11 key National Housing Survey indicators at or near their two-and-a-half-year highs,” said Doug Duncan, senior vice president and chief economist of Fannie Mae. “On the housing front, attitudes about the current selling environment continue to improve, with a significant increase in those saying it would be a good time to sell.”

Mr. Duncan added that those indicating that the economy is on the right track have risen to 44% while those saying it is on the wrong track have fallen to 50%, the smallest gap since the survey’s inception.

The share of respondents who say now is a good time to sell a home jumped five percentage points in November to 23%–the highest level since the survey began in June 2010–narrowing the gap with those who say it is a good time to buy.

Fannie Mae also said the proportion of respondents who expect mortgage rates to go up increased by four percentage points to 41%. Those expecting home prices to go down within the next year also rose by four percentage points to 14% over last month, a rebound from the survey’s record low in the prior month, while the share who believe home prices will go up in the next 12 months edged up to 37%, tying the survey high.

Additionally, 51% of respondents now say it would be easy to get a mortgage, marking the highest rate since the survey’s inception.

In 2010 Ghana announced a 60% increase in GDP estimates and Nigeria may soon follow suit. But how can the economies of these African countries seemingly grow overnight?

by Laura Gray BBC New

The answer is in the maths.

To calculate GDP in countries where data is sparse like Ghana or Nigeria, government agencies select a “base year” – a year when unusually good data on the economy is available. They then add on the extra data they collect each year to get a rough idea of economic growth.

In 2010 Ghana changed its base year from 1993 to 2006, and this led to a jump in GDP and the conclusion that, in previous estimates, about $13bn (£8bn) of economic activity had been missed. As a result, Ghana was upgraded from a low-income to a lower-middle-income country.

Nigeria is widely expected to announce a change in its base year from 1990 to 2008, although it won’t be clear until the calculations are done what exactly this will do to GDP figures.

The answer is in the maths.

To calculate GDP in countries where data is sparse like Ghana or Nigeria, government agencies select a “base year” – a year when unusually good data on the economy is available. They then add on the extra data they collect each year to get a rough idea of economic growth.

In 2010 Ghana changed its base year from 1993 to 2006, and this led to a jump in GDP and the conclusion that, in previous estimates, about $13bn (£8bn) of economic activity had been missed. As a result, Ghana was upgraded from a low-income to a lower-middle-income country.

Nigeria is widely expected to announce a change in its base year from 1990 to 2008, although it won’t be clear until the calculations are done what exactly this will do to GDP figures.

In his acceptance speech on Election Night, President Barack Obama said that “What makes America exceptional… [is] the belief that our destiny is shared; that this country only works when we accept certain obligations to one another and to future generations.”

He’s right. In America, we have done so much good for each other.

I think of the couple in Pierce County, Washington, who have two young sons. Their father was laid off from two jobs, an all too common story in an economy still recovering, or the mother in Scott County, Iowa, who unexpectedly got pregnant working twelve hour shifts, and struggling to make ends meet. She became desperate when she did the math and realized that her hard earned dollars were not going to cover the bills for her and her child.

We all help these children and their families with a little extra food, healthy food, to make ends meet. So the Pierce County couple can still give their children milk to drink. Mothers, like the single mom in Scott County, learn how to breastfeed their babies, learn what foods are wholesome, and get healthy food, like whole wheat bread, eggs and milk to keep their bellies full and their bodies healthy. [Both these stories can be found here.]

We all helped out when these families and many like them needed help. I don’t know the race or ethnicity of these families. And I don’t care. I believe that no family in this country should go hungry or be unable to get healthy food.

Through programs like the Women Infant and Children Supplemental Nutrition Program known simply as WIC, we help women and their young children who are hungry with food, but we also help them learn about good nutrition, how to breast-feed and get lactation consulting support when their babies are born. It is a supplemental food and nutrition program for low-income pregnant, breastfeeding, and postpartum women and for children under age five.

WIC, and many other programs, critical to our people’s ability to eat, have shelter and learn, are about to be mercilessly cut thanks to the “fiscal cliff,” we face on January 2, 2013. It isn’t so much a cliff as an ax enacted by Congress called the Budget and Control Act of 2011. It chops off discretionary spending to reduce federal spending by $821 billion over the next ten years. Don’t be fooled. “Discretionary spending “means programs like WIC.

The program will be cut by $543 million. This means almost three quarters of a million women and children will lose a life line that has saved them from starvation and helped them learn to care for themselves. That’s the population size of Charlotte, NC. That is far too many people, particularly when we are talking about women and very young children.

Over 450,000 of these needy Americans are people of color, according a report soon to be released by the Center for Social Inclusion. In fact, over 60 percent of the women and children WIC helps to feed and support with good nutrition, are Latino and black. Together, we fed almost 9 million people a month in 2010. And while we will continue to feed families in need, the cuts will threaten the lives and health of far too many pregnant women and new mothers and their children. Just as we come together to feed and help those left hungry, homeless and without power after Hurricane Sandy, we come together to help those in need because jobs are scarce or who work long hours and still can’t make ends meet.

Throughout the recent Presidential election cycle, we only heard about the fiscal cliff in relationship to defense spending. This is a worthy topic, no doubt. But with just a few short months away from the falling ax, in an economy recovering, but slower than any of us want, we might have expected a more vibrant discussion about feeding families, not just buying bombs. In an election where candidates debated whether or not a woman should be able to choose to carry a child to term or not, unless she is raped or her life is endanger, you might think we would be hearing more about whether our elected officials will fight to make sure that pregnant women, or families with young children, get the help they need to feed their families.

We should have heard more about food stamps too. A ripe campaign issue, since back in January, former candidate Newt Gingrich tried to turn “food stamp president” into an epithet, and Congress returned home in August without a finished Farm bill. The Farm Bill includes the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (aka Food Stamps.) The Senate version would cut the food to hungry families by $4.5 billion, while the House version would cut by $35 billion.

Everybody needs help when jobs are hard to find or the paycheck isn’t covering the rent. White Americans are the largest number of recipients of SNAP (33 percent), and over 20 percent of all black Americans and about 16 percent of all Latinos rely on the program trapped in lower wage jobs or more likely to be looking for work.

According to 2010 data, over 70 percent of hungry Americans who we help fed by SNAP are families with children.

Coming out of this election, we should think about who we are as a nation and how to hold all of our elected officials accountable to children and families of all races. Whomever it is, we must demand food for families. It’s the American thing to do.

While the economy has been an overriding factor, recent job reports have been average, meaning neither side can point to it as a strong area of attack or evidence of great success. That said, the economy is certainly on many voter’s minds but there hasn’t been any major economic news that appears to have shifted polling in the past few months.President Barack Obama has inspired a nation.

1. Ended the War in Iraq: Ordered all U.S. military forces out of the country. Last troops left on December 18, 2011.

2. Began Drawdown of War in Afghanistan: From a peak of 101,000 troops in June 2011, U.S. forces are now down to 91,000, with 23,000 slated to leave by the end of summer 2012. According to Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta, the combat mission there will be over by next year.

3. Eliminated Osama bin laden: In 2011, ordered special forces raid of secret compound in Abbottabad, Pakistan, in which the terrorist leader was killed and a trove of al-Qaeda documents was discovered.

4. Turned Around U.S. Auto Industry: In 2009, injected $62 billion in federal money (on top of $13.4 billion in loans from the Bush administration) into ailing GM and Chrysler in return for equity stakes and agreements for massive restructuring. Since bottoming out in 2009, the auto industry has added more than 100,000 jobs. In 2011, the Big Three automakers all gained market share for the first time in two decades. The government expects to lose $16 billion of its investment, less if the price of the GM stock it still owns increases.

5. Recapitalized Banks: In the midst of financial crisis, approved controversial Treasury Department plan to lure private capital into the country’s largest banks via “stress tests” of their balance sheets and a public-private fund to buy their “toxic” assets. Got banks back on their feet at essentially zero cost to the government.

6. Repealed “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell”: Ended 1990s-era restriction and formalized new policy allowing gays and lesbians to serve openly in the military for the first time.

7. Toppled Moammar Gaddafi:In March 2011, joined a coalition of European and Arab governments in military action, including air power and naval blockade, against Gaddafi regime to defend Libyan civilians and support rebel troops. Gaddafi’s 42-year rule ended when the dictator was overthrown and killed by rebels on October 20, 2011. No American lives were lost.

8. Told Mubarak to Go: On February 1, 2011, publicly called on Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak to accept reform or step down, thus weakening the dictator’s position and putting America on the right side of the Arab Spring. Mubarak ended 30-year rule when overthrown on February 11.

9. Reversed Bush Torture Policies: Two days after taking office, nullified Bush-era rulings that had allowed detainees in U.S. custody to undergo certain “enhanced” interrogation techniques considered inhumane under the Geneva Conventions. Also released the secret Bush legal rulings supporting the use of these techniques.

10. Improved America’s Image Abroad: With new policies, diplomacy, and rhetoric, reversed a sharp decline in world opinion toward the U.S. (and the corresponding loss of “soft power”) during the Bush years. From 2008 to 2011, favorable opinion toward the United States rose in 10 of 15 countries surveyed by the Pew Global Attitudes Project, with an average increase of 26 percent.

11. Kicked Banks Out of Federal Student Loan Program, Expanded Pell Grant Spending: As part of the 2010 health care reform bill, signed measure ending the wasteful decades-old practice of subsidizing banks to provide college loans. Starting July 2010 all students began getting their federal student loans directly from the federal government. Treasury will save $67 billion over ten years, $36 billion of which will go to expanding Pell Grants to lower-income students.

12. Created Race to the Top: With funds from stimulus, started $4.35 billion program of competitive grants to encourage and reward states for education reform.

People’s perceptions of the state of the current economy in Wisconsin remains pessimistic, but expectations of future economic performance and the overall direction of the state have become more rosy, driven primarily by a change in outlook by political independents. These are the latest results of a quarterly survey conducted by the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee’s Center for Urban Initiatives and Research (CUIR).

The Wisconsin Economic Scorecard, a quarterly poll of Wisconsin residents that began earlier this year, measures perceptions of the health of Wisconsin’s economy as well as personal economic circumstances of Wisconsin residents. The survey is done in cooperation with Milwaukee public radio station WUWM-FM and WisBusiness.com.

The proportion of Wisconsin residents who feel the state is headed in the “right direction” (61%) has increased for the third consecutive quarter, up from 54.9% in July and 51.2% in March. And while most respondents predicted the state economy would stay about the same last quarter, a majority this quarter (52.1%) believe it will get better.

At the same time, however, residents remain gloomy about the current state economy, with a majority (53.4%) describing it as “fair,” and 21.6% saying it is “poor.” Just 24.1% say the state economy is “good.”

And 60.3% of respondents reported a problem with at least one major personal financial issue, such as affording rent or mortgage, keeping a job or getting a loan. That’s a jump from last quarter’s 51.2%.

Analysis suggests that responses about the state’s future economy are influenced by three factors – personal economic situation, union membership and political views, with the last factor being the strongest, says Joseph Cera, researcher and manager of the CUIR Survey Center at UWM. The vast majority of Republicans (91%) reported feeling that Wisconsin is headed “in the right direction,” while most Democrats (67.2%) said the state is “on the wrong track.”

Cera says that while partisanship clearly influences opinion on the direction of the state, change over timein the level of optimism has occurred because of shifting opinions among political independents. In July, independents were nearly equally split on the question. This quarter, 63% said “right direction” and only 37% said “wrong track.”

Other findings include:

Residents once again cite “unemployment/jobs” as the most important economic issue facing the state, with 50.6% of responses falling into that category. “Government spending” (6.3%) and “health care” (5.0%) were the second- and third-most frequently cited issues.

· The survey also indicated that state residents know where they would like any additional state revenues to go in the next state budget. By a 2-to-1 margin, residents said they would prefer those revenues be used to augment funding for education rather than to receive tax cuts (56.9% to 27.3%).

· An additional “current events” question gauged whether residents would support a bill to establish mineral mining operations in the state. Nearly half (49.4%) said they would, while 41.3% said they were opposed. This poll is a random digit dial telephone survey of 472 Wisconsin residents conducted by the CUIR from October 22-25. The margin of error is 4.5%. For complete results go online at www.wisconsineconomicscorecard.org.

Fairfax, VA – OCTOBER 19: U.S. President Barack Obama shakes hands with supporters during a rally at George Mason University October 19, 2012 in Fairfax, Virginia. Obama and his opponent, Republican presidential nominee and former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney are battling for Virginia’s 13 electoral votes, which Obama won in 2008. (Photo by Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)

Perhaps unsurprisingly, the New York Times editorial board endorsed President Barack Obama for president this weekend.

The venerable newspaper applauded the president’s role in rescuing the U.S. economy and passing health care reform while slamming Republican Mitt Romney for linking up with ultraconservative forces that control the Republican Party and embraced their policies, including reckless budget cuts and 30-year-old, discredited trickle-down ideas.”

The editorial added that Romney “has gotten this far with a guile that allows him to say whatever he thinks an audience wants to hear.”

If the U.S. economy looks a little merrier this December, its Santa Claus will be the iPhone 5.

U.S. sales of Apple’s latest must-have gadget could pump more than $3 billion into the economy by year’s end, say some economists and technology analysts.

All told, the iPhone 5 could add a quarter-percentage point to the U.S. economy’s growth in the next three months, says Mark Zandi, chief economist at Moody’s Analytics.

The phones went on sale Friday. Many stores were sold out Sunday and were awaiting new shipments. Piper Jaffray analyst Gene Munster estimated Apple sold 8 million phones since sales began Friday.

Apple is expected to report official weekend sales figures Monday.

Munster’s estimate could mean pre-sale estimates of the iPhone 5’s economic impact were too conservative. JPMorgan Chase analysts had estimated earlier this month that about 8 million iPhone 5s would be sold in the U.S. through Dec. 31, enough to add a third of a percentage point to the economy’s annual growth rate in the fourth quarter.

Wherever sales end up this year, it doesn’t mean the iPhone 5 alone will revive the sluggish economy. “Some of the increased spending on iPhones will be offset by less spending on other things,” Zandi says.

Madison – Obama for America today launched Women for Obama, a coalition of Wisconsinites committed to strengthening our economy from the middle out, protecting equal rights for women, investing in education and innovation and re-electing President Barack Obama.

“I’m standing with President Barack Obama because he’s standing up for me, my mom, my daughters and all women across Wisconsin,” said State Senator Julie Lassa. “The President believes that every woman in America deserves an equal shot at success and he’s working to ensure that my daughters aren’t discriminated against in school, in the workplace or in the doctor’s office because of their gender.”

According to the National Partnership on Women and Families, women in Wisconsin on average earn $10,033 less annually than male workers, which amounts to over $8 billion in lost wages for Wisconsin’s working women and their families each year. That’s why President Obama pushed for and signed the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Restoration Act, which helps ensure women can get the same pay as men for doing the same work and he the supports the Paycheck Fairness Act. The President also established the Equal Pay Task Force to enhance enforcement of equal pay laws and helped increase the participation of women and girls in STEM fields (science, technology, engineering, and math).

Additionally, the President’s health care reforms end gender discrimination, increase health coverage and bring down health care costs for women and all Americans. Thanks to the Affordable Care Act, Medicare is strengthened for 930,000 Wisconsin seniors, 413,000 women in Wisconsin have seen coverage expand and 310,000 Wisconsin children with pre-existing conditions can’t be denied coverage. Women will also be able to receive preventive services without co-pays or deductibles, including maternity screenings, mammograms, and well-woman visits and insurance for birth control will be guaranteed.

“I’m scared that Mitt Romney and Paul Ryan want to take away the progress we’ve made in preventing gender discrimination and I don’t want my children or grandchildren limited because they’re female. I’m absolutely horrified that Mitt Romney and Paul Ryan think it’s OK to pay women less than men for doing the same job and I strongly applaud President Obama’s efforts to level the playing field for everyone,” explained State Representative Janis Ringhand. Paul Ryan voted against the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Restoration Act in Congress and Mitt Romney has refused to say whether he would have signed this bill into law.

With 50 days until November 6th, Wisconsin voters have an important decision to make and Women for Obama is ensuring their voices are heard. The President, like women across Wisconsin, understand that we need an economy built to last ― that creates jobs of the future, ensures equal pay for equal work, rewards hard work and responsibility and grows our economy from the middle out.

At stake is the direction we as a nation move in on job creation, education, healthcare, the economy and too many other issues that affect our daily lives and future.

But over the next 83 days, campaigns, parties, and super-pacs will be on a “hundred-thousand-trillion”, while many of our organizations and people will allow others to lead during this time of crisis.

There are however, many that are taking this crisis diagnoisis seriously, and in response have called a Code Red Strategy and Action Conference. Faith leaders, congregants, and concerned citizens will gather in Baltimore this week to learn how to and be certified to register voters, connect evangelism and mobilization, receive tech tools to protect voters and develop election-day plans.

This conference which is being called by the Empowerment Movement will be this Thursday through Saturday and will have the likes of Roland Martin, Bishop Vashti McKenzie, Rev. Freddie Haynes and myself providing strategy recommendations. But the real meat of the work will come from professionals like Barbara R. Arnwine of the Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights, who will breakdown the attack on our voter rights and what we can do to hit back.

Family, this work is essential because the black church has an opportunity to be the difference maker, not just in this election, but in serving as the institution that serves more than its congregants, but truly the communities in which they reside.

Barbara Dianne Savage, a brilliant scholar at UPenn stated in her book, “Your Spirit Walks Beside Us: The Politics of Black Religion”: “In the first half of the twentieth century, the dominant political narratives treated African-American religion with despair and disdain.

The emergence in the late 1950s of a Southern civil rights movement with churches, church people, and church culture at its center was a powerful and startling departure from that story, rather than a natural progression. In many ways, the movement is best thought of not as an inevitable triumph or a moment of religious revival, but simply as a miracle. It was brief, bold, and breathtaking, difficult to replicate or sustain, and experienced firsthand by only a small remnant of true believers.”

Perhaps that is why we so lift up those times and all that many people of faith worked to change in America. But now is not the time for debate on this history of black faith activism.

Now is the time to live what we want to next chapter to be. For more info or to participate in the free Code Red Conference go to www.Empowermentmovement.org<http://www.Empowermentmovement.org> if you want to do it your way…DO IT. We are all together.

The black church is as diverse as the black community that makes up its congregants and their political views are equally as diverse. Regardless of your political affiliation, shouldn’t we and not a party or campaign be the front line of voter registration, education, GOTV, and protection? It’s Code Red time, family. Will you be part of the team that sits back in crisis or the one that shows up? Your Call. As Always, I’m Jeff Johnson and that’s my truth. –Commentary by Political and Social Commentator Jeff Johnson, courtesy of BlackAmericaweb.com.

When the economy is tough and millions of people are pounding the pavement searching for jobs, you don’t expect to read about worker shortages. But it’s true: Employers in some industries can’t find the workers they need.

Each year, the giant employment agency ManpowerGroup asks employers to name which workers are most in demand and the reasons it’s difficult filling those hot jobs. ManpowerGroup’s Talent Shortage Survey for 2012 polled more than 1,300 U.S. employers and found nearly half are having trouble filling vital positions.

Companies desperate for workers often have a hard time finding qualified candidates. “This skills mismatch has major ramifications on employment and business success in the U.S and around the globe,” says Jonas Prising, ManpowerGroup’s president of the Americas.

Another challenge is that some applicants want more money than an employer offers, or they turn down part-time or temporary positions because they want full-time work.

Requirements for hard-to-fill jobs vary. Some positions call only for professional skills or previous work experience, but others require college degrees or specialized certification.

Read on for this year’s five top worker shortages. If you’re out of work, hot jobs may be waiting for someone with your skills.

Skilled Trades

Positions in skilled trades, such as welders and electricians, lead ManpowerGroup’s list of the hardest jobs to fill in 2012.

One reason is that American companies and schools haven’t prepared the workforce for these types of jobs, says Edward Gordon, president of Imperial Consulting Corp., which helps companies with employment planning.

Engineers

Engineering has been a hot profession for many years, accenting the need for more students to pursue math, science and technology studies. Plus, employers needing engineers complain that they can’t find candidates with industry-specific qualifications or certifications.